Volkswagen Polo 1.2 TSI Review – worth two Myvis?

You get what you pay for, goes the truism. In the wonderful world of NAP and import taxes, excise duties and APs, this only holds true if you believe increases in things like quality, luxury and performance should cost exponentially more. If not, there is no justifying the gajillions one will have to shell out for Bentleys, Ferraris and Lamborghinis.

It’s even more crucial when it comes to compact cars, for example, the Volkswagen Polo. If you’re in the market for a B-segment hatchback, what are you really looking for besides a reliable box on wheels that can ferry yourself and possibly an average-sized family around in about a 50 km radius with the occasional balik kampung or glutton’s jaunt further afield? If you’re looking for a pocket rocket, by all means the various GT, GTi, GTI or Sports versions of numerous models justify premium prices.

But a 1.2 litre Polo at RM113,888? There isn’t even really the badge snobbery since, well, it’s still the People’s Car and it’s not quite got the special draw of, say, a MINI. That said, there are also question marks over the Honda Jazz, which comes in at just under six figures. But that’s one for another test driver.

The benchmark for a small hatchback has to be Perodua’s Myvi, which moves over 8,000 units a month for the national carmaker. A 1.5 litre version, which kicks in at about 103 PS, or two less than the Polo’s turbocharged plant, has several trims which average at about RM55,000.

So is the Polo worth two Myvis? Let’s start with the fact it looks better and has a VW badge in the front. However, if you really wanted to show off, and insist on a VW, there’s always the Scirocco.

Look after the jump for our full scoop on the Polo 1.2 TSI.

Aesthetic and intangible qualities aside, the next obvious talking point is the powertrain and here, there is no comparison. The 1.2 TSI dishes out its 175 Nm of torque from as low as 1,550 rpm while the Myvi gets you 136 at 4,400. The TSI is also paired with the very pleasing seven-speed DSG that ensures quick shifts to the right ratio all the time.

Well, except when you put pedal to metal. This never used to happen in the old Golf GTI, but maybe the robotic monkey in the DSG isn’t quite as conversant with the 1.2 as it is with the 2.0 turbo plant. When you’re looking for that sudden burst of power, the DSG seems a bit surprised and takes awhile to figure out the three or four-step downshift it needs to make. That said, once it gets there, overtaking in city traffic is a breeze.

The Polo is well-planted and leans no more than any other sporty hatch (bar those kitted to cause spinal hernia after each speed bump) when making hard turns. Coupled with its diminutive size, it is hardly flustered when weaving devilishly through the mess of slow cars on the right lane and fast lorries on the left and motorbikes in the middle of everything.

And this is where the Polo wins points for being special. Its USP is pretty much that while it can make quick progress on all roads, it makes no real sacrifice in terms of comfort. The ride is fine despite not showing the classic wobble of so many small cars that try to mask the ‘rich character’ of our roads, while the front seats secure a mid-sized body very snugly.

Despite having more torque in reserve than, say, a 1.8 litre Toyota Altis, the small TSI manages to push the 1,126kg car along at roughly 10 km per litre in the city without any real effort at saving fuel. On the other hand, the 14-plus km per litre claimed by VW might only be achieved by driving with the same delicacy used in eye surgery.

But no such grace is needed when fiddling about in the cabin. Much of the controls for the stereo, air-con, lights and wipers are the hardy basic VW stuff without too much electronic hoopla. Yes, this means it’s from the cost effective parts bin but once again, it befits the sort of car we’re looking at buying here.

As expected, the fit and finish is all up to VW standards and maybe it’s the smaller dimensions of the car, but the standard RCD 310 stereo booms with a vibrant intensity. Speaking of smaller dimensions, one aspect where the Polo is clearly beaten by a Myvi is cabin room. But that’s to be expected in a design by Daihatsu, which has dedicated its life to creating cars in the image of Doraemon’s pocket.

The Polo also comes with plenty of safety ‘features’ (read: European base-standard safety requirements) such as electronic stability, anti-slip regulator, anti-lock brakes, etc which are only partially matched by ‘premium’ variants of local makes.

And so, we come to the cop-out … er, conclusion. It’s hard to quantify things like looks, badge snobbery and even safety features (which only count if you ever get yourself into a hairy situation). But aside from that, what the Polo offers is a very easy drive. I can see why a rich man might buy this for his daughter who just needs a small car to go about on her day-to-days. It is probably the best city runaround car, surpassing even the Fiesta – which has gained quite a following here but of course, only costs three-quarters of the Polo.

It would probably be instructive to line these three cars up and look at the comparison to figure out how much your motoring soul values each particular feature. In the end though, it’ll probably boil down to this – no family will have a Polo as its first car, but many will buy two or more Myvis.

Unfortunate then, that despite growing competition in the local market, something like an entry-level Polo is still only a reasonable purchase for the top five percent income bracket. Not that it is out of reach of those who earn less. It’s just not sensible. A terrifyingly strange thing to say about the People’s Car.

Shannon Teoh knows nothing about cars - despite having a mechanic for a father - but loves driving them. He has, however, written several articles that have caused civil unrest. So he can at least tell you what he likes and hates about the cars he drives. Or even those he has never laid a finger on. Kinda like what you guys say about Megan Fox and Kim Kardashian.

agree. turbo give some kicks to drive. Especially in city highway such as MRR2, DUKE. Easy to overtake, no lag. Tested the Polo TSI yesterday, I can say the engine + DSG gearbox is awesome, powerful and silent. Highly recommended for someone that is thirsty for power. However, all other aspect of the car reminds me of the Proton Savvy. Paying 4 times Savvy, to get a turbo charged Savvy. LOL

@ fsi, if drivers want a reliable car that can survive for a long time, purely for ferrying ppl and things around, yes Toyota is pretty good at it.. even my 1st Hyundai serve me well for 8 years with no breakdown, better than my fren’s Vios, and I still keep my Hyundai and got Polo as 2nd car..

Y? Driving pleasure cannot be replaced with majority of asian cars…

Its like buying an expensive RM2k Seiko Quartz watch and a RM3k Oris Automatic Mechanical watch..
Quartz is anytime more reliable than Automatic watches (Automatic Mechanical watch needs good care, service it after few years and if you dont wear often, the watch will stop).. but why ppl still buy mechnical watches despite both have the same purpose of showing time? Mechanical watch owners see beyond the practicality and appreciate the art behind the master piece.. an art built with soul just like conti cars..

again, conti drivers looks beyond just driving from A to B.. altis is as good as it serve the purpose of ferrying, thats all..

agree. Polo is too expensive. Polo sedan even worst (RM90k plus), the only good thing about Polo Sedan, is the NVH level is good. Engine sound hardly noticeable in the cabin. Other than that, i just the same as Proton Saga FLX.

As much as I love to talk bad about Toyota you shouldn’t forget the Prius C. In terms of safety it is on the same level as the Polo, but the focus is on good fuel economy rather than performance. Which some people may prefer. In any case it is good value for money. (Though I’d say the Preve CFE is even better value for money…).

At least VW POLO is much more worth than HONDA JAZZ, only equipped with outdated I-vtec engine and lousy 5 speed(DSG is now recognized as the most advance in transmission technology)
And in term of BRANDING, there is no way Perodua can compete against VW, not even Honda or Toyota!!

Haha which does not and had not occur on my scirocco of 3 years and has promted me to obtain a jetta as well, which by the way also does not suffer from the so called juddering. Explain that….never use before want to comment so much.

the reason the Myvi could sell over 8,000 units a month the first place is the stupid taxes :( if not the Polo directly competes with the Myvi. And can you imagine that? A VW directly competing with Perodua.

Having no competition means that is why there is no reasons for Malaysian car companies to improve their cars. Sad truth. If not our cars just might be improving as fast as the Koreans.

excise duty alone is 75%, totally ridiculous, minus that the car could b around 68k, which is justify. gomen totally hv no consideration for rakyat, simply add in excise duties just to make quick money. we can do away with this type of nonsicial gomen, collectively we can remove them for good

The taxes for the Myvi are the same as for other ASEAN built cars, AFAIK. And just 10% lower than for CKD cars (30 for CBU).

However from what I know the government decides the price for non-Malaysian cars. That way they can also avoid having cars that are too close in price to the local brands. This _usually_ avoids base spec cars. For example the base spec Polo comes with a 1.2… with 60 hp. Manual 5 speed. Apart from 6 airbags and ESP it comes with powered windows and steel rims. It does not have aircon or a radio. Such a car could probably be sold at 40-50k…

But good job VW for increasing the price of Polo. According to industry experts and all the great wise ministers, this will ensure the industry become more vibrant and its workforce remain safe.

Don’t be like Honda, haiya, why they reduce Jazz price to under rm100k? Very bad wor, current owners will lose second hand value, who gonna compensate these owners? Besides, by reducing price, the industry will be negatively affected. Proton will have to reduce workforce, Honda gonna help these anak tempatan to cari makan aa?

I was wondering if you can compare the Volkswagen Polo to the Hyundai Grand Avega and also Honda Jazz & Honda Brio & Nisan March especially in safetyness.

The reason.
I wanna change my 7 years old Honda Stream 2.0 into something smaller, and I think Hyundai Grand Avega is nice with very good price. I read that paul said that Grand Avega were designed in Europe for European taste, but I can’t find good enough information about the sefety. Is this Hyundai safety already up to the European and Japanese car?

put in this perspective, myvi is alike “kopi-o”…but it’s seem the “kopi-o” is added w/ sugar, milk to make it thicker & richer in aroma but it still taste the same. so sugar, milk is alike duty to make the kopi-o look better! next time want to drink kopi-o, drink beside starbuck, so you got class…lagi best!!!

A Polo is a better car than a Myvi. Twice as good? Not really. The
Myvi is not THAT bad.

Maybe Polo is 50% better? Interior, seats, pickup, noise, styling and handling of the Polo beats the Myvi. Actually the Polo is best in just about everything. If it was’t for the Government taxing foreign cars to death I would buy the Polo. In Germany a Polo is a cheap car, a student car. In Malaysia a Polo is a car for the rich man’s wife.

Ps. In real life driving, the 1.5 Myvi is hardly any stronger than the 1.3, so save your money and buy the 1.3. I tried both and could not tell much difference.

In Germany it is not that cheap either. A Polo will set you back at least 10.5k Euro, and that is for the manual 60 hp 1.2 without radio or aircon (or anything else really, apart from 6 airbags and ESP). The Myvi, made in Japan (thus production costs are pretty high), will set you back 8.5k, but it is more powerful and better spec’ed (same in terms of safety, but radio and aircon, mirrors can be adjusted electrically, …).

Polo comes with basic accessory. Almost all basic (but the auto power window on all four doors is good). For me, the price is too expensive. Even Preve can come out with all the light sensor, rain sensor, sensor there, sensor here with 40k cheaper than Polo. For me, Preve’s engine performance is identical to Polo (tested them both in the same day, same route), just the engine noise is too visible in Preve. NVH reduction is better in Polo than Preve.

No interest with car in Malaysia already. Price getting higher. When you own it and you need to spend for high maintenance cost. I want to consider riding bike already. Motorbike (250cc & above) are cheaper than car and cheaper in maintenance.

If you want to differentiate technically speaking, got the money to buy and to some extend don’t really care if 50 or 75 percent if your salary goes to the installment and yet you feel good about having a VW then it is up to the buyer to think if it’s worth two myvis. Personally it is a preference that some would not want to be a commoner.

It’s great seeing another writer joining the fold. Love your witty comments and the interesting way you phrase your points. Looking forward to seeing more articles from you.

Btw, when I had that car for review, I felt that “robotic monkey” you mention felt faster in engaging gears from a stop go situation compared to the Golf TSi I have back home, thus making it easier (for me at least) to cross busy intersections.

Buyers who go for the Polo usually have higher disposable income, don’t mind the space too much and a car that offers a driving feel that cannot be found in local makes. So no, even if the average income of Malaysians do increase, there are other options to invest on (and it’s not just about alternative choices of cars).

I think malaysia’s volkswagen cars are overpriced. In the European or some others countries, volkswagen is just a common car which people used for day to day use. Unlike in Malaysia, Volkswagen is premium brand which almost matched BMW or Merc brand in term of pricing. Just for the recent example. POLO GTI was previously priced at RM130k plus now, it is at RM160k plus. Increase of RM30k for nothing. It does not make sense. In overseas. POLO tsi and ford fiesta are the almost the same price. But Malaysia bolehland, It is different by 20k. It does not make sense at all……….

If the price doesn’t kill u the DSG will.
What is the point of paying so much for a car that will give you headache. All the warranty is useless when your car is stuck in service center for few days. Worse still you will be going in and out of service center many times for silly problem and not expected of a car costing 2 MYVI….

Problems : Fisrt is the turbo, 1st year of owning the car, got replacement for four days waiting and the warranty is given by VW Malaysia by Goh brothers in IPOH. Second time is the DSG megatonic after the 2nd year have to wait for more then one week to get replacement because have to claim thru insurance, hmmmm. The problems is not having a replacement car to use and have to wait for the all the paper works to claim their insurance. Imagine is a branded new car with tons of problems to get it fixed. Sad indeed to face this kind of service given for a branded car.

i am planning to buy polo 1.2 TSI but got a bit worried with the comments here. the sales person said that the DSG problems has been fixed and he does not hear any complaints since june 2012 till now. can this be true?

the interior of volkswagen is one of the best among industry, not fancy, well thouoght out details, not plastic, leather coated steerings, upholstery fabric seats, it feels like a airplane cockpit some says.

Yes, it’s basic looking but look at the assembly, the quality of the plastics, the safety functions. For instance, the Polo has ESP, Camry does not. The Polo takes 9.7secs for the century dash, the Camry takes forever (12.5secs). But, I still think the Polo does not equal 2 Myvis as the Myvi holds its own fort well too, for the price.

Looks and quality are different all together.. interior quality is above average such as soft touch, soft plastic, even the chrome looks classy.. The simple dash is due to good ergonomic, easy to use.. ergonomic is something VW score high.. unlike some of its rival with massive amount of buttons all over and confusing.. Peugeot 308’s control panel looks nice but it is one of the hardest to operate where you need to lean forward and stretch your arms to reach those buttons, which is pretty dangerous when you are driving.. for VW, things are within reach, even volume and mute control on steering wheels..

I drive a Myvi. I want a Polo.
Polo is better than a Myvi in every aspect except cabin space.
It’s a win-win for the government which ever car we buy, local car they gain, foreign car they gain. It’s a lose-lose situation for us people, local car quality is not up to par, foreign car is too expensive.
What can we do?

Why no one mentioned the the polo really got 5 star NCAP and does not skip out on safety features. I think gov’t should introduce tax break for cars that meet 5 Star, and tax cars that don’t meet. Same for emissions or fuel consumption, the lower, the lower the tax should be.

EuroNCAP is not a vehicle safety regulation enforcement agency and it is not compulsory
for all cars sold in Europe to be tested by EuroNCAP.

All cars sold in Europe only need to undergo one test procedure which is known as Vehicle Type Approval (VTA). To obtain VTA certification, a manufacturer must produce the necessary technical documents showing that it complies with the European Economic Community regulations.

With limited funds and resources, EuroNCAP cannot test every single model sold. EuroNCAP members will nominate certain key models that sell in sufficient volume to be tested.

At least I m sitting more comfortable than in that kancil .. lolz.. VW seats and Daihatsu seats are different.. ppl who drive perodua knows the seats are less comfy especially long journey or too long in the car.. on VW seats feel less fatigue, its is where conti car scores in terms of ergonomic design..

Need a lot of over taking in jam? Polo is just right for the job with high low rev torque to get the car moving, good handling and the car is easy to drive..

Jam or freeway, Polo is a good city car.. driver still smile, bcos its a VW.. you would rather wanna jam in a Polo than a Kancil :D

moreover, my journey to work is always on a open jam-free highway.. ;)

Have to agree that even for ppl who are affluent, only few will pick this car.. not bcos its not good, it is just priced too close to the next segment above..

Have to say, Polo owners are drivers who look for more beyond practical.. Its not only about ferrying from A to B comfortably, its about enjoying the driving experience..

putting into example:
– Driving a MyVi usually for ferrying passenger or cargo from A to B when it is needed. How many MyVi owners pick up the key, step inside the car and just drive without a destination, cruising on highway, tackling corners in outskirt roads, and finally come back home with a satisfying smile?
– Polo driver does.. with no purpose, picking up the key and just drive to anywhere.. “where are you going? doesnt matter, I just want to drive”.. Finding any reason to drive or drive without a reason.. Driving is beyond ferrying from A to B.. that is something you dont feel with a MyVi.. No two MyVi can give those satisfaction…

having said that.. yes.. there is a price to pay for the hefty price tag.. when you can afford and have the passion for it..

I own polo sport since early this year. What i can say is, i fell in love with driving again after so many years driving a proton. Yes the judderring was there but after worldwide ecu update it was gone. The downside of the update was that you lose a bit of growl during take off

This car is too slow for performance buffs so they wont buy it. People who buy them drive it like it has got no turbo. All the Polos I meet on the road drive slower than average Myvi owners. Then they buy this Polo for what? Just to show they are a snob?

if we consider the price, reliability, 2nd value, trend, etc…etc.. its hard to make any decision on what car to buy. there’s always a little money to spend to get better and better.
so stop considering all those factors and consider what we want instead, only then we will smile everytime kickdown the pedal.
learn the reasons. learn the technologies. imagine a relatively cheap car with the same tech with Aventador’s transmission?yes, u get what u pay..

Is 2 myvis worth 1 polo? Is 4 wajas worth 1 bmw 3 series? Is 3 cornettos worth 1 baskin robbins? Is…..? Rule of thumb 2 malaysian cars worth 1 jap car. 2 japs car worth 1 german car. Not applicable to lexus, infiniti and the likes. So is the pleasure directly proportional to their cost. I must confess there’s a different feeling when you drive all those makes. For some, the pleasure is actually in the mind.

i would suggest people who cukup2 makan buy proton and perodua ..don’t complaints a lot or have some extra money buy japanese car…
unless you have good monthly income start dream and buying european car…

You can either post as a guest or have an option to register. Among the advantages of registering is once a name has been registered, a guest cannot post using that name. If you have an account, please login before commenting. If you wish to have a profile photo next to your name, register at Gravatar using the same e-mail address you use to comment.